Midnight Brings the Best Revenge
by SiriousB1
Summary: When a series of murders Above Ground and in the Haven are found to be connected, Artemis joins Holly and the faeries in a hunt for the killer. Is a vampire really at the center of these murders? Or is it a nasty elf, come back for revenge?
1. Boredom

Midnight Brings the Best Revenge

Chapter 1: Boredom

* * *

Midnight. A shiver of excitement crept down my spine. There was never a better time to do everything that one ever wanted to do than in the dead of the night.  
  
I smiled up at the moon. It's eerie yellow light showed bright over the dark streets and alleys. I moved my tongue over my lips and breathed in a breath of the autumn air. It was wonderful.  
  
I turned into a dead end alley and stopped. I leaned against the wall and stood stock-still. I could sense the man turning the corner down the street. I was waiting for him. I gave a small chuckle. Could he be expecting me? Was he worried about the murders? Would he think that he'd be next?  
  
A foot hit the pavement next to me and my prey's back emerged from the turn. I lunged and caught him before he knew what had hit him.  
  
"Say goodbye," I whispered as he struggled under my hold. His eyes flashed around to face me and he tried to scream, but my hand was already over his mouth. I sprang up into the air to land atop the tall building whose wall I had been leaning against.  
  
And so the killing continues.

* * *

Artemis looked around the room. It was large, covered in dust and cluttered with books and scrolls of all sorts. It looked just like any other ancient library that could possibly hold information to unlocking the secrets to the strange puzzle that he was trying to solve.  
  
"Hmmm..." he thought aloud, "if I were a book containing information about these murders, where would I hide?"  
  
It wasn't any ordinary puzzle, and he wasn't looking for ordinary answers. He was looking for history.  
  
He began shuffling through papers, flipping through books and basically tearing the room apart. As he did, he reflected on current events. The murders had started about a month ago in London. It seemed like a not-so violent Jack the Ripper. Two bodies were found dumped in a small river on the morning of September 2.  
  
The bodies had seemed untouched at first glance. But, after careful observation at a morgue, the morticians found two small marks on the inside of their right thighs. At first they thought that they might have been injected with some sort of drug, but an autopsy proved otherwise. It was, in fact, loss of blood that had caused their deaths.  
  
It seemed like everything afterwards had come out of a horror film. Newspapers started rumors about vampires and superstitious nonsense that no one believed, but read anyway for a change of the usual celebrity gossip.  
  
Artemis snickered as he opened a leather-bound book that he had just pulled off a shelf. The whole idea was preposterous. Vampires? In London? Whatever happened to werewolves?  
  
But then, what was a vampire to him? After all he had been through, they could be real. Captain Holly Short had most certainly proved him wrong about silly childhood fairy tales. One year previous, a kidnapping of a fairy had gotten him a lot of gold. If fairies existed, why not vampires?  
  
Returning to his previous thoughts, he shut a book and began to unroll a scroll. No one really believed the stories; who would? It wasn't until three days after the river had revealed its unexpected treasure that five more bodies were found. And all of them had had marks on their thighs identical to those on the first two victims.  
  
The press had a field day. The front pages were filled with pictures of Bela Lugosi and articles about bats, strange mists and Bram Stoker. The worst part about it was that people gobbled it up. They loved the idea of murder and strange goings-ons in their lifetime. Why they enjoyed it, Artemis never knew, but, then again, he didn't exactly get the best kicks either (i.e. crime).  
  
To tick off the rest of the statistics, by September 16, more than fourteen bodies had been uncovered. They all bore two, small red dots on their inner thighs.  
  
Artemis sighed and sat down, rubbing his forehead. He had found nothing. The only reason that he had been here in the first place was because he was bored. He had no reason to start a crime or anything of that sort presently because it would be ignored due to all of the murders. So, what better to do than to try to figure out what was really going on?  
  
Did he really believe that the murders were due to vampires? He wasn't sure. But, as he had no other leads, that was what he was searching. He supposed the only intriguing detail about the deaths was that they had all taken place between 11:57 PM and 1:29 AM. Even more reason for the press to suspect vampires. Oh well.

* * *

Butler looked up from polishing his daggers as a very tired looking Artemis entered the room. "Any luck?" he asked.  
  
Artemis shook his head. "None. You must understand, Butler, that I am not interested in figuring this out at all. But it is just something to do; business is slow."  
  
Butler gave a small half smile and returned to shining his weapons. Artemis collapsed into a leather chair on the opposite side of the room.  
  
Bored. Nothing to do. Bored.  
  
He closed his eyes and sighed. Even though he said he didn't care about the murders, he did. You see, there was another connection between the victims that no one else had yet figured out. They all had had some sort of direct or indirect contact with a man named Theodore McKenzie within seventy-two hours of their death.  
  
Theodore McKenzie was a gambling man. He had lost a lot of money in Las Vegas and started brawls in a bars constantly. He traveled a lot and had gotten into a rather sticky spot with the police a few years back. All Artemis knew was that it had something to do with messing around with records at the University of Paranormal Observation and Research in Salem, Massachusetts. Of course, that only made the murders more suspicious.  
  
McKenzie was not only a gambling man, but also a man of his own beliefs. According to Artemis's sources, he had founded the UFO Observatory in Russia, the Research Center of Ghosts and Such in China and several other large organizations in paranormal research. He himself had paid $2 million to fund a college's trip to Transylvania. McKenzie claimed that it was all done in the name of those who have yet to be discovered.  
  
BANG!  
  
Artemis's eyes snapped open and Butler shot to his feet. The sound was something that he had never heard so clearly before, but he immediately knew what it was:  
  
There was someone on the roof.


	2. Connection?

Midnight Brings the Best Revenge

Chapter 2: Connection?

* * *

-TWO DAYS PREVIOUS-  
  
Captain Holly Short sat down in the chair across from the empty seat of Commander Julius Root. She had been called in to discuss the dangerous matter at hand.  
  
Of course, the matter was the disappearances. About twenty faeries of different kinds had illegally made their ways above ground within the past three weeks. All of them had been faeries with bad reputations...very popular in the crime business. Several of them had been given terms in jail, all of which escaped and were on the "Faeries Most Wanted List."  
  
She twirled around in her seat. Nasty business, it was. Once the LEPrecon figured out that the criminals had gone to the land of the Mud Men, they had sent out several squads to seek them out and bring them back to The Haven.  
  
Fortunately, most of the squads had been successful in finding and returning them.  
  
Unfortunately, the 12 that they had found were all dead.  
  
Each of the twelve had faced an obviously painful death. One had had his throat severed by a very jagged and rusty blade. Another's eyes had been plucked out of their sockets and placed delicately into his mouth. The tenth one they had picked up was one of the more grotesque deaths. The commander didn't want to get into to great detail, but he had told her it involved a rope, a severed hand, a tongue and a very bloodied rapier. Of course, one couldn't forget the faerie who had been done in the old fashion way: disembowelment.  
  
"Short," said a voice behind her, breaking up her thoughts. She swerved in her chair to face Commander Root. His face was of normal color, which was a good sign, but he was frowning. But, then again, Root only smiled once in a blue moon, so this did not mean anything.  
  
Holly nodded her head and, with an airy tone, replied, "Commander."  
  
Root walked around his desk and sat down in his seat. "We have a situation here, Short."  
  
The elf rolled her eyes at her superior and said, "Sir, we ALWAYS have a situation. If we didn't, we'd all be out of jobs."  
  
Root didn't crack even a slight grin. "No jokes in my office, Captain. Now listen here: it's about the murders."  
  
Holly stopped fidgeting in the chair and looked at him seriously for the first time."The murders, sir? What information do we have? Have any of the remaining eight missing been found?"  
  
"Slow down Captain," he said, raising a hand. "We have found three more of the bodies: one in the Mississippi River, one on the coast of Australia and another on buried under some snow in the Arctic. I don't want to get started on how they died; you know how brutal they've been." Holly nodded and let him continue. "But that's not the worst of it. You see, there have been more disappearances down here."  
  
Holly froze. "What?!"  
  
The Commander sighed. "Yes, you heard me right. In addition to the twenty that escaped before, we now have seventeen more missing, bringing the total to 37. Three of them are ex-convicts, five of them are on the most wanted list, eight of them are currently at large and one..." he paused, massaging the bridge of his nose. "And one is Randa Bawshan."  
  
"Randa Bawshan?!" Holly gaped. Randa Bawshan was the host of one of the most famous fairy talk shows to date: Goblin Gossip. She was a goblin, obviously, and just as stupid as the rest of them, but she had a good heart. She dedicated her show to topics like the most stylish clothes, the best hairdo, events you wouldn't want to miss out on...it was very popular with some of the newer generation. "Was she involved in a secret crime or something?"  
  
"That's the thing," he replied. "As far as any of us can tell, her record remains perfectly clean. It was like she just decided to get up and leave The Haven."  
  
Now that was interesting news. All of these murders and vanishings had been connected in some way up until now. All of the previous had been evil, vile creatures. Why an innocent talk show host?  
  
And that is when Foaly rushed in.  
  
Root stood up abruptly and said, "D'Arvit, centaur! Can't you learn to knock?!"  
  
"Sorry, Root-honey," Foaly said sarcastically. "Listen up, I've got news!"  
  
Holly sighed and raised her eyebrows. "Don't we all?"  
  
Foaly ignored the Captain's comment and continued. "I was looking around the Mud Men's online newspapers to see if they caught on to any of the murders of our dear, fellow faerie friends."  
  
"And?" Root asked, expectantly.  
  
"Didn't catch a thing," said the centaur. "But don't get too settled in that brain of yours. There's more."  
  
Holly glanced at her commander. This couldn't be good.  
  
"Even though they haven't yet gotten whiff of our problems above ground, I was able to look up a few of their own." Foaly said, matter-of-factly. "Turns out, we aren't the only ones who are having problems with missing peoples and murders. Seventeen Mud Men have mysteriously vanished within the past few weeks and all of them turned up dead."  
  
Root and Holly made eye contact and then both returned their gazes to Foaly. This was worse than not good. This was horrible.  
  
"They were found in rivers, lakes, and stuff like that," continued Foaly. "All of them died by loss of blood. Morticians found puncture wounds on the inner skin of their right thighs." Holly froze (again). That method of killing sounded VERY familiar. "Not to mention the fact that all seventeen of them were criminals. In addition to their fabulous choice of lifestyle, they all have another connection."  
  
Root groaned. "I don't like where this is going, Foaly. I take this doesn't have a happy ending?"  
  
Foaly nodded. "It seems that they had been in contact with the one and only Theodore McKenzie."  
  
"D'Arvit!" swore Root.  
  
Unbeknownst to Artemis, Theodore McKenzie wasn't just well known above ground. He was very popular below, as well. Under a different name, however: Oravano Kei was a crook unlike any other. He had caused one of the worst cases in The Haven. Well, not as bad as the one Artemis Fowl had caused, but still pretty bad.  
  
Oravano was an elf. As stated above, he had caused a very terrible incident called The Mall Massacre. Oravano and several other elves had showed up at one of the younger generations' shopping malls about twenty years ago. It was simply dreadful. Seventy-five dead and about three hundred injured. He had evaded the LEPrecons squads and laid low for a while. About five years later, he had been caught and accused of several minor crimes and sentenced to life in prison. (Thirty years for the small offenses, and life for the massacre.)  
  
Of course he had escaped. He went Above Ground and mingled around the Mud Men for another ten years under the name Max Dunn. He made the mistake of running into a scout from the LEPrecon who had been on the lookout for Mulch Diggums and got into a nasty bit of fighting.  
  
Then, about three years following that, a secret scout of the LEPrecon spied him (he's not the best master of disguise) in Reno. Ever since then, the force had been monitoring his movements. He had quite a few hits on his record as a Mud Man, not all of them pretty.  
  
Anyway, getting back to the discussion in the office, Root's face was turning from a bright scarlet to a deep purple. A vein was pulsing on his neck and was clearly threatening to burst at any second. "D'Arvit," he swore again.  
  
Holly turned (rather, swiveled) to face Foaly and said, "Can all these murders, faerie and Mud Men, be connected at all?"  
  
Foaly shrugged. "Likely, and, then again, not likely. Sure, it is strange that the murders are large in number and have occurred around the same time, but the killing style is very different. The Mud Men's murders seem to be neat and fast, while ours are more...implacable."  
  
Root sank back down into his chair, his face returning to its normal color. "You know..." he began.  
  
"Probably," said Foaly.  
  
"Smartass," the Commander muttered under his breath. He continued speaking in a regular voice. "I'd bet anything that, if this these slaughters are so large in the world above, Artemis Fowl is involved in some way."  
  
Holly shook her head. "No, I don't think so," she said. When Root started to protest, she interrupted, "Trust me, Commander. That guy kidnapped me. I know what he is like and he would never kill that many men without good reason."  
  
Foaly smiled. "Well then," he put in, "why don't we go find out if that reason exists?" 


	3. Stranger and Stranger

Midnight Brings the Best Revenge  
  
Chapter 3: Stranger and Stranger

* * *

Look at her. She's just waking up, totally oblivious to everything that's going on. But, then again, what could you expect a talk show host to know outside of the latest gossip?  
  
She's stirring now, her eyes flickering awake. Her head rises a little and she squints against the light shining from the street lamp. What a more perfect time to kill such an ugly creature?  
  
She can't see me, which is exactly what I have intended. Her vision stops just outside the circle of light that the bulb provides. Isn't electricity wonderful?  
  
CRACK!  
  
I smile. That's right, goblin, look worried. I know that a mere broken twig won't hurt you, but do you? Of course not.  
  
"Who...who's there?" she stammers. "I know you're out there. I warn you, I'm more powerful than you might think!"  
  
I laugh beside myself. What amusing creatures these goblins are! So stupid and self-confident. She is looking nervous now. Do you think my laugh startled her?  
  
"I'm warning you!" she says, standing up. She puts out her hand to conjure up a fireball. "I'm telling you! I can hurt you real bad!"  
  
"You think so?" I muse. I laugh again. She almost falls off of her feet! "Very well, I'll play along."  
  
I step into the light. She gasps, surprised. But, then again, who wouldn't be when they see my face?  
  
"It's...it's you!" she gasps.  
  
I laugh once more! Incredible how foolish they all are!  
  
And so she gains confidence. She takes a defensive stance and attempts to summon up a ball of fire. How her eyes widen as she realizes that no such power can come to her now! What a fool!  
  
"Say goodbye," I sneer. Her scream rings out as the dagger rips through the flesh on her arm. She tries to fight, but without her powers she has no chance. She's still sobbing quietly when a bone is ripped from its joint. But now she quiets, the flow of blood finally making her black out.  
  
All right then. So she's gone. What does it matter? I continue to disassemble her limbs. First her other arm, then her legs. Hell, why not? Her ears as well.

* * *

FOWL MANOR  
  
Butler dropped the rag that he had been using and put a dagger in each hand, the rest in his pockets. Artemis's eyes grazed the ceiling and the windows of the den. The rail fell hard outside and a flash of lightning followed by a crash of thunder illuminated the room with an unnaturally eerie glow.  
  
Butler turned to his employer. "You stay here, Artemis," he said firmly. "If I'm not back here in ten minutes, take the secret exit out of the house."  
  
Artemis gave a quick nod. He himself would normally have tried to think up a plan of his own, but there wasn't time. "Be careful, Butler," he said.  
  
Butler turned without a backwards glance and hurried out of the room. His footsteps faded as he rushed down the hallway.  
  
CRASH!  
  
Artemis rushed over to the window and pulled the curtains shut. It was just a little thunder and lightning; nothing to worry about.  
  
Then why was he feeling so jumpy?  
  
No one had ever broken in the house before, with the exception of Mulch Diggums. And he wouldn't be trying to get in from the roof, heavens no. There were several logical explanations for the thumping noises on the roof: it could have been a tree branch that had been struck by lightning...it could have been some debris that the wind happened to pick up during the storm...hell; it could even be that lightning had struck the house.  
  
But he doubted all of those possibilities considerably.  
  
He normally wouldn't have been too worried; Butler could handle this sort of thing. But with all of the murders going on...  
  
He didn't even want to think about what sort of things could happen to Butler if this crazed, homicidal maniac were the one on the roof. Butler was strong, sure. But was he strong enough?  
  
And that's when the doors to the den burst open.

* * *

THE HAVEN  
  
"Nasty business, Foaly, nasty."  
  
Commander Root was seated in the big squashy chair in his office, rubbing his forehead. Foaly stood on the other side of the desk, his tin-foil hat sitting atop his head. He was holding a number of case files in his hands. One of them was, of course, the file with all of the information on the current serial killings. Another was a folder (slightly smaller than the previous, but not much so) filled with documentaries of the Mall Massacre twenty years ago. The final was just a few papers held together with a paper clip. These papers contained the information pertaining to the murders that the Mud Men were dealing with. Hence the reason why there were so few papers.  
  
"Look, Julius," he sighed. "It wasn't your fault. There's nothing you could have done about it."  
  
Root leaned back in his chair, still massaging his temple with a finger. "I know," he said. His tone was unusually soft. "I just wish we could do more. Randa Bawshan was a ditz, but she didn't do anything to deserve...dismemberment."  
  
They both fell silent. It had happened only two hours ago. A group of scouts had spotted what looked like a goblin leg lying in the middle of a ghost town's street. When word got to Root, he himself had personally gone up to the scene. Foaly had already been there, getting pictures and writing down some notes.  
  
It was most definitely one of the more grotesque scenes that they had found. All of her limbs (plus her ears) had been torn apart using a dagger (which they had found lying some number of feet away from the torso) and pure strength.  
  
Not the kind of thing patrol scouts see every day.  
  
Foaly set the files down in front of the Commander. "Here are the files you wanted. I don't think that the murders here and Above Ground are the same criminals; look at how different the killings are!"  
  
"I understand Foaly," Root growled, "but I never said that I thought they were all of them the killed by the same person. I said that they're all connected."  
  
Foaly rolled his eyes. "Well, obviously, sir. But how?"  
  
Root swiveled in his chair. "Well, Oravano is most definitely situated in the entire thing. It could be him."  
  
Foaly tapped one of his hooves thoughtfully on the ground. "But he couldn't be doing this on his own. At the Mall Massacre he had quite a few helpers and even then he didn't do much."  
  
"I'm well aware of that fact," snorted Root. "He's not smart enough to mess with the Haven and Above Ground at the same time without some sort of help. But, you must admit, he's certainly strong enough to rip apart a goblin limb from limb."  
  
Foaly folded his arms across his chest and huffed. He didn't like being uncertain of the facts. He decided to try another idea with the Commander. "What about these Mud Men suspicions?"  
  
"What, vampires?" Root sneered, a very scary sight. "You're supposed to be the best, Foaly! You should know that the few vampires that are still around are weak and unintelligent. They hide in their small covens and talk about whom they would kill if they could get Above Ground. No, we'd know if one of them were Above."  
  
"But what if it wasn't one of the younger vampires? What if a vampire had escaped The Burning?"  
  
Root almost laughed aloud, which made Foaly's idea pretty wild. The Burning had taken place in the Haven over 5,000 years ago. That had been the time for vampires; the time when they really had been feared.  
  
A small collection of elves and even a handful of goblins had gotten together to end their reign of terror. They met during the daylight hours Above to discuss plans and ideas. Yet, somehow, the vampires always knew who had gathered them all together and where they had been hiding. Most of them died over time. But soon there were more faeries and even some Mud Men who had banded together to stop them. They were much more successful than their predecessors as they took action instead of talking about doing so. They'd search of the vampires' lairs all day and drag the coffins and bodies into the sun. Those who stayed underground used UV Lights to destroy them.  
  
And then the real problem arouse. A hero by the name of Randolph Morhan stood up with a plan on how to destroy all of his kind. Yes, Randolph Morhan had been a vampire. He wanted to help them because he still lusted for mortality. The plan itself had been simple: destroy the first and you'd destroy them all.  
  
Easier said than done.  
  
Try as they might, they never found the first vampire. Randolph didn't know; he was young, only 106 years old. Most of the vampires had no idea who the first was either. Only a small handful knew and they weren't talking.  
  
It seemed that nothing could be done to stop the horror. That is, until Randolph revealed his back up plan. It was intelligent, cunning, sneaky...and dangerous. There was no guarantee that it would work.  
  
Of course when the vampires found out that Randolph was spying for the hunters, thus betraying them, they attempted to kill him. Unfortunately for them, that had all been part of the plan.  
  
All of the vampires came to kill Randolph, with another intention of taking over The Haven. But when they got there, they saw that they had been fooled. Randolph had been standing in a room in an old house, and soon as his kind entered it, the house went up in flames. Randolph had sacrificed himself for the sake of the Haven and Above. No one had escaped that fire.  
  
Or so it seemed.  
  
Root stood. "I refuse to believe that a vampire is behind the Above's murders. It must be a Mud Man deciding to pull some stunts that no one's tried before. You know, to get the media's attention."  
  
"You got a better idea than that?" asked Foaly. "'Cause, you're gonna' need one."  
  
Root turned a light shade of pink. "Get out of my office, centaur. I'm going to read these case files."  
  
Foaly shrugged. "Very well, Julius." He exited, leaving Root to sit at his desk and review their problems. 


	4. Discovery

Midnight Brings the Best Revenge

Chapter 4: Discovery

* * *

-AT THE SAME TIME ABOVE GROUND-  
  
When Artemis registered the sight that met his eyes, he couldn't help but give a short laugh. Moving slowly into the room was Butler, holding a small, feisty creature up by the scruff of her neck. The creature, who was kicking the air violently, was none other than Captain Holly Short.  
  
"Curse you, Butler!" snarled Holly, still thrashing madly. "Put me down!" She was reaching into the folds of her clothes for some sort of sinister weapon when Butler released her. She crashed onto the ground, bottom first, and made a move to pull the body guard to the ground with her.  
  
"Uh, uh, uh," Artemis laughed, smiling maliciously. "My house, my rules, Short. Rule number one: don't even attempt to attack my body guard."  
  
Now standing, Holly looked coldly up at the boy, an impulsive anger brewing in her gut. Being told what to do by a Mud Man, least of all Artemis Fowl, was not how she liked to spend a mission. However, if she was going to get any information on the murders, she would have to.  
  
"Hello to you to, Fowl," she snapped. "I see you haven't changed since the last time we met."  
  
Artemis's lip curled in enjoyment and distaste while he recalled his kidnapping of the LEPrecon officer. It had been a grand and foolish move, making him very well known down in The Haven. He doubted, however, that Holly had come all the way to his home to reflect on those events over tea and biscuits.  
  
As he tried to decide on a reason for the faerie's visit, Butler grunted, "I found her sneaking on the roof with some choice weapons," here held up what appeared to be a laser gun, "and a print-out map of your house. I daresay she was having a good time trying to break in."  
  
Holly rolled her eyes at the towering man and tapped her foot impatiently. "Look," she said, her tone annoyed, but business like, "I didn't come here to break in and steal your fortune or anything like that. I need information, Fowl, and Root seems to think that you are the person to get it from. Trust me, this is the last place I would go under normal circumstances."  
  
"But?" interrupted Artemis, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"_But_," pressed the captain, "the Haven is in a state of disaster, and so is your world."  
  
"And tell me, _Captain_," sighed Artemis, "how do you know that my world is, as you put it, facing a disastrous time?"  
  
Holly smiled a bit and replied, "Foaly."  
  
Artemis turned and walked toward a blazing fireplace saying, "I should have guessed. Nothing gets past that centaur." He paused, gazing into the flames as they licked the logs from his place on the hearth, before muttering, "_Confutatis maledictis, Gere curam mei finis_."  
  
Butler and Holly glanced questioningly at each other, each expecting the other to know what he said. "What was that, Fowl?" Holly asked.  
  
The boy turned to face them and smiled. "Oh, nothing," he said. "I didn't say a word."  
  
"Yeah right," Holly said, rather sarcastically. "Getting back to the matter at hand, you Mud Men aren't the only ones having murder problems. The Haven has lost 16 to brutal deaths and 21 are still missing."  
  
Butler made a motion to the round card table where he had been cleaning his daggers, and the three sat down, getting ready for a long night of explanations.  
  
"Why am I not surprised?" said Artemis, clucking his tongue against the roof of his mouth. "Now you said that your commander thought I might be able to provide him with some insight to these cases. Is it because he things I've got a brilliant mind or because he thinks I am somehow at fault?"  
  
Holly smirked. "Take a guess."  
  
"I thought as much," he chuckled, quickly nodding toward Butler. His friend got the message and itched a spot on his ear. The faerie's eyes narrowed at this, but could not think of its possible relevance.  
  
Before she could inquire about the Artemis's actions, the boy continued, "If Foaly is working on this case then I can hardly say that you are at a loss of knowledge regarding the events up here. However, none of us here have the access to the facts that Foaly does, so you are going to have to fill me in on what sort of murders you little faerie people are investigating."  
  
While Holly explained the situation going on in the Haven, Artemis regarded his manicured fingernails, using a small pocket knife to remove any dirt he found. Although this lack of respectful attention itched at her anger, the faerie continued her story without mentioning it. If she was going to tell the Mud Man off for being inconsiderate, now was not the time to do it.  
  
When she finished the gruesome tale, she went on to explain Commander Root's theory that the two cases were connected in more ways than one. "He doesn't believe that the two are being committed by the same person," she told him, "but that the killers are in league with one another."  
  
Artemis scratched his chin and said, "Funny you should say that. I was thinking the same thing." He stood up and motioned for the two at the table to follow him. He led them out of the den and into the hall, which was covered with expensive paintings and antiques. While they walked, he asked, "You mentioned the name Oravano Kei: can you tell me some more about him?"  
  
Holly eyed him suspiciously, knowing that he knew something she didn't, and said, "He's an elf who has had a bad reputation here and in the Haven. He massacred a bunch of folk about twenty years back and then escaped up here, changing his name to Max Dunn. Now he's going by the name," she paused, thinking, "Eomer McFrenzy?"  
  
"Theodore McKenzie," Butler corrected her, glancing over at his employer.  
  
"That's the one," snapped the captain, slightly annoyed at having being corrected by a Mud Man.  
  
They had reached their destination. Artemis unlocked a door and opened it wide: it was a room full of computers. Holly hesitated before entering; even though Foaly used computers, as did half the underground, she didn't like them one bit. They were too smart for something that didn't have a brain.  
  
Butler grabbed two seats, rolling a swivel one to their guest and sitting in a high backed wooden one himself. Artemis placed himself in front of a computer and positioned himself so that Butler and Holly could see the screen. He flicked the mouse and the screen went to a blue desktop, jumping out of its hibernation mode.  
  
"Theodore McKenzie," he told Holly, "is the commander's other connection. All of our murder victims had been in contact with him within three days of their demises."  
  
"Should have guessed," mumbled Holly. "But what has he done? Do you think he's behind this?"  
  
"Possibly," said Artemis. He was typing like a mad man in an open window and clicking furiously as new ones popped up. He stopped when he found what he wanted: Theodore McKenzie's criminal records.  
  
"There are just his records while he was posing as a human," he said, scrolling down to view the long list of events. "It doesn't look like he has ever killed anyone," he reported, "but he did manage to do a number on a few guys who got him angry at a bar."  
  
"I just don't get it," Holly said, frustrated. "If he's not doing this, who is? It's obvious that our problems are being caused by someone with muscle, but your murders have no leads!"  
  
"That's not exactly true," Butler said, speaking for the first time since they had entered the computer room.  
  
Rolling her eyes at him again, Holly laughed. "Don't tell me you two are beginning to believe that stupid vampire nonsense!"  
  
Artemis closed the records and said, "More and more."  
  
This was the last thing holly wanted to hear. "_Please_," she groaned, not believing her ears. "I thought you two were at least sensible enough to get over that silly idea."  
  
"Well," Butler grinned, "the idea that faeries existed was silly too, but you can see where that got us."  
  
Holly sighed, seeing that she wasn't reaching them. "You probably don't know this, but all the vampires were destroyed centuries ago in this thing called the Burning…"  
  
"The Burning," interrupted Artemis, "might not have been the most successful action."  
  
The faerie eyed her host thoughtfully. "How do you know about the Burning?"  
  
Artemis grinned, loving to share his information. "The burning of vampires wasn't strictly an underground affair. If you had checked your sources carefully, you would recall that some humans got involved in it as well. They recorded the event and have had their descendents happily living under the delusion that all the vampires have perished."  
  
"You're saying that some of them escaped?" inquired Holly skeptically.  
  
"Exactly," replied the cocky boy. "_Confutatis maledictis, Gere curam mei finis_."  
  
"You said that before," muttered Holly. "What does it mean?"  
  
"It's Latin," he started, "for…"  
  
But what it meant was not revealed, for at that very moment all the computers shut down.  
  
And all the lights flickered off.


End file.
